The Choice to Stay
by Heachan
Summary: Duo has to go on a mission and is thinking of not coming back, but something changes his mind.


He placed the phone down on the receiver. They needed his assistants...again. The problem of having useful talents. He had just returned home. At least it had become home to him. The small two-bedroom apartment was sitting in the corner of the property. The sun had just set and it was raining lightly now. Streetlights were beginning to come on in the streets nearby. He opened the blinds slightly to look out at the road. It was peaceful and quiet out there. He let out a long sigh. He was getting tired of having to leave all the time. These trips were always tiring and wore him out. And he did have his own business to worry about. He couldn't just keep taking off and leaving all the work to his partner. At least this time he wasn't going to just leave and not tell her.  
  
This time he wasn't going to leave in the night and leave a note behind. They had already had conversations about the way he left. Normally he would just brush it off. He could leave permanently whenever he wanted to. And during the war he had decided not to return. But for some reason here he was again. What had brought him back here? Was it actually home? People knew where to find him. Oz and White Fang had both tracked him down to this town before so it wouldn't be too hard for anyone else to find him. But where would he go from here? That never seemed to be a problem until now. Did it have to do with his partner? Was she why he didn't want to leave? After the war, when he wasn't suppose to come back here, the only reason he did was because she had been injured.  
  
Maybe he felt guilty since she was hurt bringing him information. He quickly dismissed the idea. Like that would ever be a reason for him. He stifled a yawn and turned away from the window, heading back into the living room. His partner was no longer in there watching TV, but must have gone to bed already. He headed up to his bedroom for the night as well. Once he turned the light out he realized how much he was truly dreading having to leave the next day. There was a pit forming in his stomach and he turned over trying to ignore the feeling. That's how he always managed his problems. Just ignore them and they'd eventually go away. After tossing around in order to get comfortable, he fell into a deep sleep. *** "So he ran off again, huh?" The older man mentioned, as he was preoccupied with something. The worker nodded back. "Yes sir, I don't know how we're going to be prepared at this rate. That kid's weird." He commented. The older man looked at the worker almost amused at the remark. "Weird maybe, but he's smart." He looked up at what he had been working so hard on. The dark machine stood tall and silent. "I don't know of many people capable of piloting this Deathsythe, afterall." He mentioned going back to work. "He'll turn up, he always does. I don't think he has anywhere else to go." ***  
  
Something was nudging him hard. He didn't want to wake up; he was perfectly content staying there. He then noted the sound of the alarm. Okay so maybe he hadn't heard it before. Then came the annoyed voice penetrating his sleep.  
  
"Duo, come on. Wake up, that things been going off for five minutes now." She said in a cranky tone. He suddenly jolted awake. "What time is it?" He asked glancing at the clock. His partner raised an eyebrow in confusion. He realized he hadn't told her yet. He stood up and shamefully scratched the back of his head.  
  
"Um, Hilde I didn't get a chance to tell you but I got a phone call again last night." He admitted. He watched as her facial expression dropped. "Where to this time?" She asked looking down at the floor. "To earth for now. I'm not sure how long I'll be gone." He answered her. She looked up, concern written all over her face now. "Will you at least call me when you get there?" She asked. He felt like he was being mothered now. He was old enough to take care of himself. He had always been old enough to take care of himself in some sense. But for some reason he was agreeing to her request instead of telling her she was being ridiculous.  
  
That was what he usually did. "Yeah, sure thing." He absentmindedly promised. "But no parties while I'm gone. I would be sad if I missed anything." He added patting her on the head. She moved away with an aggravated laugh. "Oh stop it and get out of here." She said leaving his room. After breakfast he headed to the spaceport. ***  
  
It was now dark in the hangar when the small figure sneaked in. It hid in the shadows in case anyone was still in there. But all the workers were now sleeping after the hard day. He walked over to the Mobile Suit that was in the middle of the hangar. In the dark someone could have easily missed even seeing it. He put a hand on it. The black steel was cold. He shook his head at it and turned, leaning up against it.  
  
"Do they honestly think this plan of theirs is going to work?" He said outloud to himself. He crossed his arms infront and shut his eyes. "I mean haven't the colonies been through enough as it is. This might not work." He pointed out, glancing up. He actually felt bad about what he was saying. "Well I mean it's not your fault." He said...to the machine? That made alot of sense, talking to a machine that couldn't answer.  
  
Maybe he did it because no one there ever really let him talk. All he ever got around there was orders. He might have mouthed off on occasion but other then that, there was no one there his age. He let out a sigh. "Guess I'm just lonely. Seems as though you and I are the same." There was no answer but he didn't seem to care. There was some noise and the lights came on. He shielded his eyes. "Hey!" He said, gritting his teeth. "Duo, what are you in here for? It's late." He could recognize the voice all to well.  
  
Dr. G walked up to him. "You should get to sleep." He told him. "What's with the concern all of the sudden?" Duo said jokingly. "We've got training tomorrow and I don't want you sleeping through it." Came the simple response. "Sheesh, yah don't gotta treat me like a kid." Dr. G smirked at that. "That's cause you are a kid. An interesting one at that but a kid none the less." It was true; Duo had only been with him for a couple of years now. Despite all that had gone on up to that point, he was still younger then he acted. And he never considered Dr. G as a parent.  
  
And Dr. G never treated Duo as anything more then an employee. They had too many sarcastic and cruel jokes towards each other to really show any appreciation. But it was implied. They were quite the pair. Dr. G wondered if anyone else was having such a hard time with their pilots. ***  
  
It had now been a couple of weeks since Duo was gone. He had called Hilde when he had made it to earth but after that there was no more communication. But she wasn't worried about him. He always came back in one piece and knew how to take care of himself. She was getting ready to close up shop for the day. Once the last customer was gone, she finished cleaning up, picked up some paper work for later, and left the building. She turned and locked the door, then headed to the apartment.  
  
Once she got inside she heard something. She stopped where she was and listened. It was so faint that it was hard to tell where it was coming from. Then it hit her, the sound; it was in the room with her. She walked over to the couch and dropped her folders. Fear crept over her and she felt weak. Duo was spawled on the floor next to the couch. He was cringing in pain and wasn't moving except for each attempt to breathe. She dropped down to her knees next to him.  
  
"Duo! What happened? Can't you hear me?" She pleaded but got no answer.  
  
She tried to lift him up onto the couch, carefully. He felt heavy and lifeless to her. She tripped twice in the process under his weight and had to quickly make sure she didn't drop him. A small sound escaped his mouth, which gave her some hope. Even if she hadn't been concerned for his well being when he left now every possibility went through her mind. She tried to get him up again by placing her arms under his and around his chest. She lifted him up and this time there was more then a small whine. Duo let out a loud cry and weakly tried to get to her let go.  
  
She quickly let him slip back down to the floor. Was he hurt that badly, she wondered, trying to think of something else? She tried to scoop him up and this time she didn't get such a strong rejection. All that effort wore her out but she couldn't stop there. She leaned down towards his face. "Duo? Are you alright?" She asked softly. He slightly shook his head and cringed again. Another wave of pain hit his body. His face expressed so much pain that chills went up her back. "Should I call for an ambulance?" She asked more to herself then to him. His hand came up as if saying no.  
  
He was trembling now. She stood and hurried out of the room to get an afghan from her room. She also grabbed some medicine from the bathroom. Half way back down the hallway she heard him. "Hilde...nn." He sounded so weak. She hurried back to the couch. As she got over to him, his hand came back up and tugged lightly at her pant leg. He was going to say something but stopped. He blinked a couple of times, trying to focus. He looked up at her pleadingly. She was relieved that he was awake but the look in his eyes was almost too much for her. "What can I do? Is there anything?" She asked him.  
  
She had always wanted to help in any way possible. He realized how nice that was, to be able to depend on her. "Just...s..stay." He responded, still weakly hanging onto her. Hilde wasn't expecting such a reply from him. He must have really been out of it. She could feel her heart stirring with not just concern now but something else that wasn't there before. She placed the blanket around him and smiled lightly at him. "Don't worry about that." She straightened up, still smiling. She picked up the pill bottle from the table. "Can you sit up?" She asked him. He wearily shook his head.  
  
She put the item back down and sat down next to him. Then she gingerly lifted his head and got more situated on the couch. He looked up at her as she reached to the table again. Why did she care so much for him? She reminded him of someone else but he couldn't remember whom at this point. In any case he wasn't going to try to figure it out now.  
  
Just being there with her though somehow seemed right instead of weird. This was his partner and roommate. Nothing more, right? ***  
  
It was dark again in the hangar. They had never told him the whole plan until now. They had left out the part about dropping a colony onto the earth. But he had overheard it. He wasn't suppose to maybe but he did. There was someone above Dr. G in this whole plan. Dekim something or other. Whatever his name was it really didn't matter, the true idea of Operation Meteor was wrong. The thought of destroying the thing he was trying so hard to protect didn't make sense.  
  
It was dark again in the hangar when he entered. He stood in the doorway not moving. It had been completed. Before he would know it things would be out of his hands. Dr. G understood why he didn't agree with this idea and didn't seem to like it either, but that didn't seem to matter now. He couldn't stand there any longer. He had made up his mind. He slung a heavy bag over his shoulder and headed towards the Deathsythe. He was too determined to stop now. He looked up at it. "I'm sorry but there's no way I can do this plan now. And if I don't do something to stop it I could never forgive myself for it. I hope you understand." He explained to the silent giant. ***  
  
The medicine had helped from what Hilde could tell. Duo was asleep now and resting peacefully. He was now calm and no longer tense from the unknown pain. She was content with that and just sitting there with him. Even though things had settled down, the fear from before was still there in the back of her mind. Her heart had never seemed to settle. What if he hadn't made it back? What if he was in a worse condition then this? And she was still not sure what had happened. Every fear was still attacking her. She carefully wrapped her arms around him, trying to sooth her fears.  
  
She could feel Duo's heart beating through his shirt. She leaned down, placing her cheek on top of his head. He moved slightly. Even now, he was bringing her comfort. And he wasn't even awake to do it. He had always encouraged her not just in words but also in how he acted. And now seeing him in this state, it just seemed so unnatural. But there was still some comfort in this moment. ***  
  
He had been caught. Dr. G had stopped him before he could get away with it. But he didn't seem to act like it mattered. He admitted his whole scheme proudly. Dr. G didn't even seem displeased either but his suggestion wasn't the response Duo was expecting. "Duo, why don't you steel Deathsythe?" Of all the crazy things to suggest. But then again it did make sense. Sure he could work this from that angle. And it didn't involve destroying Deathsythe or killing himself. He now couldn't wait to go to earth. Although later he might look back at all of this and wonder 'how'd I get myself into this anyway?' ***  
  
Duo turned some on the couch. He felt so stiff for some reason. He went to move only for the soreness to return. The painkillers were wearing off. Why couldn't he ever say no to these missions? This one was the worst too. He settled back down, wincing with every movement. ' This was what happens when you pilot low-class mobile suits,' he lectured himself. Those things were so bad and couldn't take much damage. And when they get hit, the pilot gets slammed around in the cockpit. He could feel the bruises on his shoulders and chest from the belt straps before. Once the pain was almost ignoreable again, he opened eyes. The first sight was Hilde. She must have fallen asleep by accident.  
  
She was so caring though. He had considered not coming back. Just not returning, she would have figured it out right? But now he felt so bad just thinking it. Was staying here with her the life he really wanted? He had always come here and even when he was injured he came here. Now Hilde moved causing Duo to look up. She wrapped her arms around him more. He let out a long deep sigh. The strange thing now was there wasn't any pain. Then he heard her small voice.  
  
"Duo, are you okay?" She asked him quietly. He closed his eyes, for some reason the sound of her voice was so nice to hear. "Yeah I'll be okay." He answered back looking up at her. The concern in her eyes drove him crazy. He was going to leave? How cruel would that have been? He couldn't imagine what that would have done to her. "Hilde, can I stay here?" His question caught her completely off guard. "What are you talking about? Of course you can." She answered. He looked away from her. "I wasn't going to come back this time. I don't want to be such a burden to you anymore. You deserve a normal life. Not one stuck to someone like me. There's too much danger whenever I'm around." He explained now wishing that he hadn't asked if he could stay. She almost looked angry at this point.  
  
"And don't I get a say in what I want my life to be? I choose this too yah know. And besides that...I..I don't want you to leave. Things wouldn't be the same around here without you." She admitted almost crying. Duo was shocked at her response. "But why? All I cause is trouble." He pointed out. She just shook her head. "I don't understand why I want you to stay, I only know that I do. The thought of you leaving...I would be so sad without you." She answered back. He wanted to tell her she was crazy or something like that.  
  
Everyone who got near him managed to get themselves killed. She had even been injured at one point getting him information. He was going to tell her but then he saw it in the darkness. Tears...she was crying. Over him? Then something occurred to him. What if he did leave, and someone tried to find him and came here looking for him. But he wasn't here, what would happen to her then. The least he had to do was protect her. He finally came to his conclusion.  
  
"I won't leave Hilde. I promise I won't." He told her. He caught sight of her smile. He went to move his hand up, pain shot through it but it didn't stop him. He touched her face and smiled back. She stared back, surprised that he would do anything like that. She smiled even more. "This is my home now." He told her. "I'm glad you're staying." She answered back. They eventually fell asleep again and stayed there all night. 


End file.
